Trials and Tribulations
by ILoveJorja
Summary: My entry into the CSIFO Fanfiction Challenge, "How Should It All End?" The challenge is to come up with our own ending to this amazing television series. I hope this does it justice. Actually I hope the real series finale is better.
1. Chapter 1

**Trials and Tribulations**

My entry into the CSI Forever Online June 2015 Fan Fiction Challenge: "How It All Should End." Sponsored on csiforeveronline wikifoundry dot com and hosted by Calim1. The challenge is to write your own ending to the CSI: Crime Scene Investigation series, the 2 hour series finale TV movie, "Immortality," set to air on September 27 2015.

CSI. GSR. Gil Grissom, Sara Sidle, and all the characters returning for the CSI movie. Rated T. Drama.

 **Trials and Tribulations**

 **Chapter One**

( _Interior, Courtroom_ )

"All rise."

There was a general rustling of clothing and scraping of chairs as the interested parties in the courtroom stood, and then when the judge instructed, sat down again. Sara Sidle sat at the front table to the left and faced the judge. She had files in front of her and her lawyer to her right. On the other side of the aisle sat Ronald Basderic. He leaned over to his left and whispered something in his lawyer's ear, then straightened and shot Sara a smug look. She studiously avoided making any eye contact or engaging him in any way, instead nervously sifting through the papers and making neat piles of them.

The judge looked around the courtroom and observed that everyone was silent and looking at him expectantly. He cleared his throat.

"As you know, this is a preliminary hearing to determine the charges and counter-charges in the case of Sidle vs Basderic and Basderic vs Sidle. This is an informal hearing without a jury or grand jury present. Remember, the outcome could be two separate trials of the named individuals; a dismissal of some or all of the charges for one or the other person; a finding of sufficient evidence to proceed to trial on one or more offenses; or a dismissal of all charges to both individuals. We will be hearing evidence to support or refute all the alleged crimes. I hope you all have your testimony and corroborating evidence ready."

"We have, Your Honor," both lawyers responded in quick succession.

"Identify yourselves," the judge said, first looking at Sara's lawyer, a young 30-something-year-old man, of below average height, dark haired and nattily dressed in a well cut dark grey suit.

The lawyer stood quickly.

"My name is Charles Bancroft of the firm Olbermann & Chase."

"Are you a court appointed lawyer, a police union representative, or were you hired by Ms. Sidle?"

"I'm an attorney in private practice hired by Ms. Sidle, Your Honor."

"Very well. And you are?" The judge looked at Basderic's lawyer.

"Bob Richards, Your Honor, defense lawyer to my client Ronald Basderic." Richards had a booming voice and was possibly the biggest man in the room, 6' 4" with a big waistline and broad chest with a thatch of choppily cut dark blond hair. His suit seemed a little tight and the top two buttons of his dress shirt undone with his tie loosely knotted. He smiled at the judge with big teeth in what he clearly thought was a winning smile. The judge ignored it.

"Mr. Richards, how long have you known your client, Ronald Basderic?"

"Over six years now."

"So you have defended him before?"

"Er, yes," Richards responded, looking uneasy for the first time. "On three separate occasions…but he was acquitted…"

The judge interrupted. "We'll get to that. All the criminal charges over the years against your client will be examined." The judge turned to the other lawyer.

"Mr. Bancroft, how long have you known your client?"

"Approximately two years. Since criminal charges were first brought against my client, Crime Scene Investigator Sara Sidle."

"I know Ms Sidle, she has testified before this court on numerous occasions," Judge Saunders replied in a warmer tone. "She has always been professional, articulate, and well informed." Sara brightened for the first time and smiled at him. Basderic glowered and poked Bob Richards, hissing something. His lawyer stood and spoke sharply.

"With all due respect Your Honor…Since you know the defendant, and apparently think highly of her, shouldn't you recuse yourself?"

The judge sniffed and fixed him with a hard stare. "I am sworn to be impartial, _Mister_ Richards. The fact that I know Ms Sidle as a member of the law enforcement community is relevant to her as a person but irrelevant to the charges against her. I doubt there are any judges in Clark County who do not know CSI Sidle. Sit down."

He sat down.

(Cut To: _Interior, McCarran Airport, Las Vegas_. There's the normal confusion of people arriving and departing at a busy airport; long lines of people in front of the check-in counters and a stream of families and passengers laden with luggage emerging from the gates.)

Greg Sanders looked eager as he craned his neck and scanned over the people moving toward him. He glimpsed a head of strawberry-blonde hair and moved closer, looking intently until his face lit up with a broad smile.

"Catherine! Over here! Hey Cat!"

The two old friends and colleagues quickly met and hugged. Catherine Willows drew back and swatted Greg's arm playfully. "Didn't I tell you never to call me Cat?"

"Yeah, about 12 years ago!" They laughed and Greg grabbed her carry-on bag and she his arm and they strode toward the baggage claim, talking animatedly.

(Cut To: _Interior of a city taxi._ The driver is a swarthy man of Middle Eastern descent. There is a miniature flag of Syria glued to the dashboard and various exotic looking doodads personalizing his cab.)

The cab driver turned his head around to look at the passenger climbing in. It's D.B. Russell, looking uncharacteristically somber in a black suit and with a full white beard making him look old. He had to stoop to get his tall frame inside and he sat back with a sigh before speaking.

"Airport, please."

"Where to, bud?" Russell glared at him tiredly as if to say _'I just told you…'_ so he quickly added, "Which airline?"

"Oh. Southwest Airlines please."

"Got it. I'll get you there in no time, mister. I'm a very fast very good driver." They pulled out and the cabbie looked over his passenger in the rearview mirror.

"If you don't mind me saying, you look like you lost big at the casinos," said the friendly driver.

"No. No, I don't gamble. I lost… but not something. I lost someone. Someone I cared about."

The cabbie looked uncomfortable but pressed on tentatively. "Oh, I'm sorry. Family?"

"Not exactly. A friend. I was her boss. Her name was Julie Finlay and we worked together. She was…she was…one of my best friends and a helluva investigator." Russell's voice softened. "Smart, stubborn, beautiful. A fighter. But she lost her last fight."

"Cancer? Was she sick?"

"No, no," Russell shook his head. "She was beaten to a pulp by a serial killer, lingered in a coma for 6 months, and died this morning in Seattle."

The cab became very quiet.

( _End of Teaser Scene. Roll Credits.)_


	2. Chapter 2

**Trials and Tribulations**

CHAPTER TWO

( _curbside at airport_ )

Catherine and Greg emerged from McCarran Airport and blinked in the sudden bright sun. Catherine fumbled for her sunglasses and commented on the difference between the Nevada heat and the Washington D.C. humidity. A taxi pulled up and to the CSIs' surprise, Supervisor Russell climbed out.

"Catherine!"

"D.B!"

The two exchanged a warm hug and then broke off to talk.

"What are you doing here? I thought Greg was going to pick me up…wait, you have luggage? Don't leave on my account," Catherine joked.

"No…" D.B. answered somberly. He seemed to be struggling to explain as he realized Catherine had never met Julie Finlay. So he addressed Greg, "I'm sorry to tell you that Jules died this morning."

"Oh."

"There's going to be a small service and burial in Seattle. I'll be back the day after tomorrow."

"I'm sorry…who? What happened?"

(Flashbacks)

 _Russell goes to a boat marina at night to investigate a lead on the Gig Harbor Killer. Inside a boat he finds disturbing evidence including newspaper clips of the killer's crimes, and stalker photos of himself, his daughter, and Julie Finlay…He is confronted by the madman, disarmed, overpowered, and in serious trouble until Finn shows up and shoots and wounds the serial killer. Jared Briscoe is tried and sentenced to life in prison. A horrifying crime with the same m.o. happens in Vegas…The weapon was a bloody boat hook but there is no body, just a macabre manufactured crime scene investigation, strung to map blood spatter before the CSIs arrive. Suspicion falls on Briscoe's twin brother, a wealthy businessman protected by sleazy lawyers…they were separated at birth. Russell confronts Paul Winthrop outside a club and warns his date that he is a murderer. The CSIs work to gather and analyze evidence including planted clues referring to twins. A mass grave is found in the Nevada desert. Finlay is trapped in an SUV with a ticking bomb in the engine…Russell is behind a bomb shield frantically trying to get the bomb squad to rescue her when the phone rings. The voice forces D.B. to state that the wrong man is prison…and Jules is saved…but that admission gives Winthrop's lawyers ammunition to reopen the case and create reasonable doubt. Another crime, another bloody fisherman's gaff, with a pre-recorded 911 call and flashing strobe cameras illuminating another pre- processed crime scene and enough blood to indicate there is another dead young woman out there somewhere. Russell goes to Finlay's condo, calls out at the door, then spots blood and goes in to a nightmare scene…blood and trajectory strings…Paul Winthrop holds him at gunpoint and taunts him to imagine the ordeal that Julie went through before she died…Russell looks closer and realizes the crime scene staging is incomplete and there is only a pint or so of blood….Officer Mitchell and Sara Sidle burst through the door and the men exchange shots…Mitch shoots the Gig Harbor Killer in the shoulder…Sara radios to search the garage for Winthrop's car…Greg and Morgan pop the trunk and find Finlay beaten almost beyond recognition and covered in blood…Greg pulls her out and can't find a pulse but says she's still warm, and they frantically call for a medevac._

(End Flashbacks)

Catherine looked horrified and touched Russell in a supportive gesture. He seemed to shake himself from his traumatic memories and mustered a small smile.

"So you haven't told me why you've suddenly shown up in Las Vegas?" he asked.

"Oh, I'm here for some family business you might say," Catherine followed the shift in conversation. "My daughter Lindsay has graduated and is going to be a CSI."

"Here? In our lab?"

Catherine smiled proudly. "Yes. I'm going to show her around and get her settled in." Then, the former supervisor inside her blurted out, "Who's going to take shift?"

"Uh. Tell…can you believe I almost said, tell Jules? I guess it still hasn't sunk in yet, even though she was in a coma for months," D.B. shook his head. The guilt and grief clung to him. "Let's see, Sara's on trial…Nick's left for San Diego…I guess that means you, Sanders."

"Sure." Greg could see Catherine was bursting with more questions. He took her elbow. "We better let Russell catch his plane. I'll explain on the way home."

The group exchanged goodbyes.

A/N: I did mean to update this sooner, honest, but the tweets and instagrams and teasers are coming in every day of the filming of 16x1 "Immortality." It's a wonderful thing. It's a dream come true to see Grissom back and interacting with Sara in an encouraging way. As a fanfiction writer, though, it is conflicting with what I'm writing, and I'm second guessing where the story goes in relation to what I can surmise from the photos. So I decided to just finish as I originally envisioned. With maybe some scenes inspired by CSI, as all our writing is inspired by CSI. Scenes and dialogue in this chapter and in future chapters are lifted directly from transcripts, so as always copyright disclaimers apply. This is where I beg for reviews. And a vote on the CSIFO FF Challenge page if you really like it. Please.


	3. Chapter 3

Trials and Tribulations

Chapter Three

(Interior, Courtroom, continuation)

"Ms Sidle, let's begin with you. Can you tell us what led up to the events of September 16, 2013? How did you and Mr. Basderic first cross paths?" Judge Wilcox asked.

"I first became _acquainted_ with him," Sara responded from the witness stand, glaring at Basderic, "in connection with a waitress at Frank's Diner. My colleagues and I have frequented that diner for many years. Over time we got to know all the employees by name, and they knew we are law enforcement. This waitress, Edie Graham, confided in me that she was being stalked by Ronald Basderic. He stayed for hours at the diner trying to engage her in conversation, followed her home, followed her everywhere. He left notes in her mailbox. Edie did everything she could to discourage his advances and just get him to leave her alone! I tried to help her obtain a restraining order but the judge denied it. Then on October 10, 2012, there was a mass shooting and Edie was one of the casualties…"

(Flashbacks)

 _(Frank's Diner, just after a massacre; everyone has been killed but the owner who was locked in the walk-in freezer. There are bodies and blood pools and blood spatter everywhere. Sara, Greg, and Nick have just entered to have a casual meal and discovered the crime scene.)_

 _Captain Jim Brass arrives and confronts Officer Akers._

" _What the hell happened? You were here?" Brass demanded angrily._

" _We'd just left. Captain, it was only a couple minutes. Register's cleaned out. It looks like a robbery, maybe."_

" _Maybe?"_

 _Akers tried to explain. "Edie was having trouble with some guy, a stalker. He was hanging around out front."_

" _Well, did you do anything about it?"_

" _Wish we had. We were gonna go talk to him, but he was gone before we even got outside."_

" _We know this guy, right?"_

" _Yeah."_

" _So put a broadcast out! Get him here!"_

" _Yes, sir."_

 _(Flashback. Inside Frank's Diner. Sara is working the crime scene and standing over Edie's body)_

" _All this carnage, you know. I don't buy robbery," Sara explains to D.B. Russell. "Akers is putting a broadcast out on the stalker. Ronald Basderic. Been terrorizing Edie for six months. Wasn't enough to kill her. He wanted to destroy her whole world. Gunshot to the head, up close and personal." Her eyes narrow in disgust. "I tried to help her get a restraining order, but the judge denied it. Basderic has been very careful. He'd push right up to the line and never cross it. Until now." She looks down and points to the floor next to the body. " Shoe impression. They don't match any of the shoes in here."_

 _(Flashback, interior of Morgue, Dr. Al Robbins is standing next to Edie's body on the metal slab.)_

 _The swinging door to the morgue thumps open and Basderic walks in and stand rigidly, not making eye contact._

 _The coroner spoke sharply to him, "Can I help you?"_

" _I'm looking for a loved one who was brought in. Edie Graham."_

" _Reception let you come back here?_

" _I might have given them the impression I worked for the mortuary." Basderic stares creepily at the body._

 _Robbins isn't buying it. "So, you're the next of kin?"_

" _I'm the closest thing Edie's got. We were gonna be married." He seems downright delusional._

" _I see, Mr... Basderic." The doctor formulates a plan to remove the intruder. " David, call Sara. Tell her to bring down Edie's paperwork right away for Mr. Basderic."_

 _Ronald is surprised that he is recognized. "Right." He chuckles. "We met at the diner where she worked. I went in there a lot. She was always so good to me. So warm. I just knew. And I could see in her eyes... she felt it, too."_

" _I'm sorry for your loss," Robbins says coldly._

 _Basderic attempts to approach the body. The coroner stops him by jabbing his crutch into Ronald's chest. "Right there. I can't allow you to touch her."_

 _Ronald pulls out a ring box. "I'd like to put the ring on her finger."_

" _No. I'm sorry." Doc Robbins says firmly._

 _Sara bursts in with gun drawn and trains it on Ronald. "That's him. That's Basderic. Hello, Ron. It's a match. You're done, you son of a bitch."_

(Return to present. Sara is still speaking.) "All the evidence was pointing to him being the killer. His shoeprints in blood next to the body, the gun found in a newspaper bin with Ronald's prints on a newspaper…but it turned out that it was a hit gone wrong arranged by the owner of the diner."

Basderic looked smug.

Sarra fixed him with a brave look and kept her narrative going. "So I confronted him."

 _(Flashback, interior of the police station. Basderic is signing himself out of jail.)_

" _You see? You were wrong about me. I didn't hurt her. I couldn't. I loved her," he whines to Sara. She responds angrily and gets in his face._

" _You loved her? Are you kidding me? You terrorized her. You kept her awake at night. You made her afraid to walk down the street. And you want to know what else your twisted love did? It killed her, Ronald. Edie was supposed to be off work at 4:00. She should have been gone when the shooting happened, but she was afraid to walk home because she was afraid that you were out there. It's because of you that she stayed, and now she's dead."_

 _Basderic looks like he's been slapped. For the first time the truth dawns on his face and he looks almost remorseful._

(Return to present. In the courtroom, the judge is speaking to Sara.)

"So you believe it was at that time that Mr. Basderic shifted his obsessive behavior and began stalking you?"

"Yes, Your Honor."

"What do you base this suspicion on?"

"At first it was little things. I had a feeling I was being watched. But that isn't unusual, every time we work a scene some looky-loos are usually nearby. I'd go home and things were moved slightly. I put it down to being tired and not paying attention to how I left the house when I went to work. But I'm trained to read a room. I installed a sophisticated alarm system and activated it whenever I came in and went out. After the events came out I contacted my alarm company and got logs of every time someone deactivated the alarm."

Sara's lawyer got up and handed her a stack of files and she gave a sheaf of papers to the judge.

"As you can see, there were numerous instances of someone in my house during my work hours. Here's a log of my work schedule, and a comparison…at first it was once or twice a week and then it escalated… the visits also became longer."

The judge nodded thoughtfully. "That certainly seems like criminal behavior. How do you know it was Basderic?"

"I obtained video surveillance from a neighbor." She showed him on her tablet. The images of a shadowy figure going into and out of the house played. Unfortunately they were all at night and so it was difficult to distinguish who the intruder was, and the judge pointed that out.

Sara seemed unfazed. "My colleagues Nick Stokes and Greg Sanders examined my home thoroughly to find any evidence of someone else inside." She handed him another file with photographs.

"They found shoeprints that do not match mine. They found hairs in the bedroom that are consistent with Basderic's hair…as you can see mine is very different." The judge smiled slightly. Basderic looked almost ill. "They found, after an exhaustive search, one fingerprint on the bedside table."

The judge leaned back and looked at Ronald. "Mr. Basderic, you will be charged with burglary and criminal trespass, both felonies. You will also be charged with stalking. The first offense is a misdemeanor, subsequent offenses are gross misdemeanors…but you probably know that."

Basderic nodded sulkily.

"Ms. Sidle, apart from distress of discovering the violation of your home and sanctuary, how did Basderic's actions affect you?"

"They led to my being accused of first degree murder."


	4. Chapter 4

Trials and Tribulations

Chapter Four

(Interior, Courtroom. Sara is still in the witness box.)

"Please elaborate, Ms. Sidle, on your being accused of murder." Judge Wilcox instructed.

"I was at the Mirage Hotel to celebrate my birthday. I had made reservations weeks before and was hoping my husband would join me. He didn't show up. A man I knew slightly came up and offered me a slice of birthday cake. We split it and shared a bottle of wine. "

Sara continued, looking more uncomfortable. "I, uh, went up to his room for a nightcap. We talked for maybe an hour or two. I left, went back to my room, and went to sleep."

 _(Flashback, the next morning. Sara is exiting an elevator. She looks hungover. Greg, surprised to see her, tells her there is a body on the 18_ _th_ _floor. Sara goes with him, and is horrified to discover the dead body is Taylor Wynard and that he has been stabbed to death. She informs Russell that she had been in his room the night before._

(Return to present. Interior, Courtroom.)

"You say you knew this man. Who was he and how did you know him?"

Sara looked embarrassed. "His name was Taylor Wynard. We uh…we met at a bar. We had too much…I had too much to drink. I had just had a devastating phone call from my husband…" She trailed off, looking upset.

The judge prompted her to go on. "Your husband is Gil Grissom, former nightshift supervisor?"

"Yes." Sara swallowed heavily. "Since he retired from the crime lab, and we got married, he's been overseas. Since 2009, apart from short visits, doing scientific research and consulting work. We made it work for years, with me flying out to see him and phone calls and Skype and emails…but we grew apart. After those years of separation, the strain on our relationship was getting worse. And the night before I met Taylor, Gil called and said we needed to separate, that neither of us was happy and that he was holding me back from a better…" Sara trailed off and fought back tears. She drew a breath, shakily. "I was lonely. Taylor seemed nice. He walked me to my car and…we kissed. "Sara wiped her eyes. "He felt different from my husband, and I knew it was wrong, so I stopped it. We parted amicably and I drove home alone. Two weeks later Taylor showed up at my table; it was a complete surprise." She drew a deep breath. This part was harder. "Someone took photographs of us kissing and planted them in my bedroom." She winced. "Obviously I didn't take them. Obviously I wouldn't keep them. I still love my husband." Sara was fighting tears.

The judge looked sympathetic but pressed on. "So you were in this man's room, and the next morning he was found dead. I can see why suspicion would fall on you."

"Yes. There was my lipstick and fingerprints on a wine glass. The knife, the probable murder weapon, was planted in my house, inside a dishwasher that was already running when I came in."

"How did you establish that it was Ronald Basderic that was framing you?"

"Initially, it was a necklace. A special necklace that Edie Graham gave me as thanks for trying to help her. It was planted in Wynard's room. I didn't have that necklace with me at the hotel."

"So what did you do?"

 _(Flashback, Interior of a nondescript parking garage. The elevator opens and Basderic steps out. Sara is waiting, almost laying in wait, for him.)_

 _Sara confronts him. "I know it's you, Ronald. You wanted me to know, right? That's why you left the necklace?"_

" _I honestly have no idea what you're talking about." Basderic says coldly._

 _Sara becomes more agitated. "The necklace that Edie gave me. Because I helped her when she wanted a restraining order against you. You watched every move she made back then. I'm sure you were stalking her when she bought it, right?"_

" _You really don't look well, Sara. I wonder if you're not experiencing an unusual amount of stress lately. I'm worried about you," Basderic said insincerely._

" _You killed a man, Ronald!" Sara is growing even more upset and her voice rises. She advances toward the stalker. "Why? Why did you do that? Because I helped Edie? Because I... because I stood up to you?"_

" _But you were wrong about me then, Sara. What makes you think you're not wrong about me now?_

" _You've been following me; you've been stalking me. You took those pictures. You somehow arranged for Taylor to be at the hotel."_

" _And did I somehow make you go up to his room? Did I force your infidelity on you?"_

" _Stay away from me." Sara is beyond horrified._

" _Speaking of which, have you called your husband? Have you told him about the tough day you're having? Tell you what, let's do it together. I have his number right here on speed dial. Basderic pulls out his phone and hits some buttons._

 _Sara slaps it out of his hand and the phone clatters across the floor._

The judge cleared his throat. "Thank you, Ms. Sidle. Please return to your seat." Sara got up and, a little shakily, returned to the table with her lawyer.

Judge Wilcox spoke gravely. "I think at this point we need a different point of view as to how the actions of the accused affected you. We've arranged for Gil Grissom to testify."

The door at the back of the room opened and Grissom stepped through. Sara looked dumbfounded. They made eye contact but did not speak.


	5. Chapter 5

Trials and Tribulations

Chapter Five

(Interior, CSI Lab)

Catherine Willows ushered her daughter Lindsay through the various rooms with a possessive hand on her shoulder. Greg and Morgan, looking amused, trailed behind.

"And this is the DNA Lab. Say hello to Henry."

Lindsay rolled her eyes. "Mom! I practically grew up here. Hi Henry."

Henry smiled politely. "Hello Lindsay. Good to see you again."

"Lindsay is going to be a CSI, working here," Catherine announced proudly for the umpteenth time.

"Is that right? Well, you should fit right in," the lab tech responded.

The little parade continued down the hall.

"I'm sure you remember Uncle Gil's old office," Catherine said, waving her arm expansively.

"Mom! I haven't called him Uncle Gil since I was in third grade. Besides, didn't he retire, like, a million years ago?"

"More like 6 years," Greg said mildly. "January 2009."

"See? So isn't it somebody else's office now? I don't remember the mushrooms."

"That's right; it's your new boss's office. D.B. Russell. I'm sure he would rather be here to meet you but he had to go to Seattle for a funeral just now."

"Really? Who died?" Lindsay said with the nonchalance of the young.

"A CSI…" Catherine trailed off as realization dawned that a CSI had been brutally killed in the line of duty and now her little girl was going to be a CSI. Her eyes widened. Nobody said anything for a beat.

"A CSI named Julie Finlay," Morgan added before the silence became too awkward. "She was a lot like Catherine. A blood spatter expert and the second in command. She's going to be hard to replace."

"We'll take real good care of her," Greg told Catherine.

"Right, because nothing bad ever happens to CSIs around here," Catherine said darkly. There was another loaded silence.

Morgan and Greg both flinched and looked at their pagers as they beeped simultaneously.

"Catherine, Lindsay, we're going to have to leave you now, we're due in court to testify for Sara." Greg explained.

"I'll catch up with you later, Lindsay," Morgan said in a friendly tone and then they both turned to leave.

"Let's go see Uncle Jim," Catherine said a little too brightly.

The CSIs chuckled as they heard Lindsay protesting again.

(Cut to: Interior, Courtroom. Grissom is seated by the judge. He has a laptop open on the table in front of him. His eyes keep straying to his wife.)

"Dr. Grissom, could you tell us a little about what brought you here?" Judge Wilcox asked.

"I was notified by Greg Sanders that my wife Sara," Grissom said gravely, "was involved as a defendant in a murder investigation. And during the course of that investigation, it was brought to light that someone had been tampering with my email."

"Elaborate, please."

"I began getting emails from Sara that were…unpleasant. Even shocking. She wrote that she was unhappy being married to me. That she had decided to see other men. This one is dated 10/21/2012. 'Grissom. I'm tired of waiting for you. I have needs. If you can't be with me, or be bothered to visit, I'm going to look for affection elsewhere. Signed, Sara.'" Next. 'Grissom. I can't believe I married an old man. What was I thinking?' This one is dated a week later. 'Grissom. I'm dating a great guy. The sex is fantastic. He does things you only wish you could.' There's a photo attachment of Sara sleeping in our bed..." Sara's mouth dropped open in shock and disgust. "This one is dated…"

Sara interrupted, shouting, unable to remain silent. "Gil! I never! I would never…" She burst into tears.

The judge admonished her gently. "I know this is painful, Ms Sidle, but it's best that we know exactly how deeply involved the accused was in interfering with your life. Dr. Grissom, how did you become aware that these emails were not actually from Sara?"

"Unfortunately, not before I made a terrible mistake." Grissom looked pained. "I believed them. I told my wife we should separate. And I cut ties with her." His eyes welled up and he wiped them away impatiently. "I should have known…I do know that Sara would never be so cruel." He mouthed _'I'm sorry'_ to Sara. She was still trying to control her emotions.

"Six months afterward I got a call from CSI Sanders."

"I believe CSI 3 Greg Sanders is present. Take a seat, Dr Grissom, we may have more questions for you later."

Grissom stood up and made his way stiffly to a chair behind Sara's. He leaned forward on the railing dividing the room. Offering his hand and trying to catch her eye, he sighed in relief when she took his hand in both of hers.

"We have a lot to talk about," Sara whispered.

Grissom nodded seriously. "I'm so sorry," he whispered back.


	6. Chapter 6

Trials and Tribulations

Chapter Six

(Interior, Courtroom, continuation. Greg is seated beside the judge. Grissom and Sara sit together at the plaintiff's table, holding hands.)

"Could you tell us what you discovered on Dr. Grissom's email account?" asked the judge.

"If I could back up a little," Greg asked, and the judge nodded, "Nick Stokes, Julie Finlay, and I worked out what it would take for Basderic to set Sara up for Wynard's murder."

 _(Flashback, hallway of CSI Lab, Greg, Finlay and Nick are in conversation)_

 _Greg is thinking out loud. "Sara thinks Basderic committed the_ _hotel_ _murder; that the whole thing's an elaborate set-up aimed at her."_

 _Finlay said thoughtfully, "If that is what's going on... think about what that would take."_

 _Greg added, "Exactly. What_ _would_ _it take..? Seriously. If Basderic wanted to pull_

 _it off - kill Taylor Wynard, frame Sara... What would that require?"_

" _Well, for starters, he'd have to know Sara was gonna be at the hotel?"_

 _Nick responded. "Not impossible. Sara made the reservations online two_ _weeks_ _ago. If_

 _he hacked into her email..."_

" _Okay, what else?" Greg asked._

" _A million things," Finlay said, imagining, "He'd need to get in and out of Sara's house._ _And_ _her hotel room,_ _while_ _she was_ _there_ _..."_

" _He'd have to arrange for the_ _victim_ _to be at the hotel, too," Nick added._

" _Well, assuming Basderic's the one who took the photos, he knew about their_

 _previous encounter."_

" _So maybe Basderic approaches Taylor, pretends to be a friend of Sara's, tells_

 _Taylor she's going to be alone on her birthday, so..."_

 _"That's a_ _hell_ _of a lot." Finlay said._

 _Nick considers it, then said, "Frank's Diner was four months ago. If Basderic's been planning to get back at Sara ever since..."_

" _Who better than a crazed and obsessive sociopath to pull it off?" Greg finished._

" _So... if he set her up, there has to be evidence of it, right?" Finlay asked._

" _We just have to find it." Nick said with determination._

 _(End Flashback)_

"So after Basderic was arrested, we seized his computer and cell phone and all his files. We also obtained his phone records," Greg explained. "He was pretty sloppy. Didn't even bother deleting his old emails. The ones Grissom just read to you? Came from his address. Then, with permission, I was able to access Grissom's junk mail files. There I found the _real_ emails that Sara sent. They are loving…affectionate…sad, sometimes…but nothing like the fake ones. For one thing she never addressed him as Grissom, always Dear Gil or My Love…she always signed them Love, Sara. They are kind of private, so…"

"That's all right, we don't need to hear their private correspondence. I can say for certainty that you, Ronald Basderic, will be charged in addition with tampering with electronic mail. And stalking by use of electronic mail, which is a Class C felony." Judge Wilcox said sternly. "Now we get to the most serious charge of the case. The murder of Taylor Wynard. What can you tell us about that?"

"At first we concentrated our efforts in proving Sara innocent. For starters, Sara was out cold when the murder occurred. Tox results found that Sara's blood alcohol level was still 0.3 and the sleeping pills, Zolpidem, were 0.9 milligrams per liter more than 12 hours after the murder. Sara insisted she had taken a single 5 mg pill, so we had Hodges test the pills. Sure enough they had been tampered with and were twice the indicated dosage. In fact they were powerful enough that in combination with alcohol, might have resulted in coma or death."

Grissom sucked in a breath. Sara squeezed his hand and they looked at one another.

Greg continued to explain about the tampering with the door lock mechanism, Sara's hair planted in the shower drain of Taylor's hotel room, and the knife mysteriously materializing in Sara's dishwasher.

"All right, it seems clear that Ms Sidle was framed for the murder. Can you prove that Mr Basderic actually did it?"

"We can, Your Honor," Sara's lawyer answered. "The phone records that CSI Sanders brought up prove that he, Ronald Basderic, was in contact with Wynard up until minutes before he was killed. We have surveillance video of Basderic in the hotel that night, but no record of him staying there." Mr Bancroft approached and showed the judge video footage on a portable player. "He is seen exiting the casino floor and taking an elevator. Thirty minutes later, he reappears, with new dark stains on his sleeves and shirt front, clutching a bundle of what appears to be bedsheets. Basderic then took the bundle to the parking garage and drove away."

"Suspicious, certainly, but not proof. Do you have anything else?"

"Basderic's taped confession."


	7. Chapter 7

Trials and Tribulations

Chapter Seven

( _Interior, Courtroom, continuation_ )

Judge Wilcox's demeanor shifted. "A taped confession? By all means, let us hear it."

Greg pressed Play.

(The first voice was Sara's. She sounded dangerous. "Don't. Leave the lights off."

Basderic spoke with a note of surprise in his flat intonation. "What do you want?" 

Sara's voice rose and became more intense. "What do I _want_? I want to _stop_ you,

Ronald." There was a tension filled pause, and then Sara spoke again: "I didn't want to do this. I didn't want to come here. But you made me." Her voice was desperate, rising, getting louder. She was losing it. "You discredited me at my job. You had me arrested... And then you go to my _mother_?"

"You can't think that you'll get away with this..." Basderic said.

"Nope. But I don't care." Her voice filled with rage. She was breathing hard. "Somebody needs to stop you. You've ruined too many lives...Now I'm going to ruin yours."

There was a loud click, then the sound of a gun's slide being pulled back, followed by some rustling of clothing.

Ronald sounded triumphant. "I removed the firing pin."

"What? How?" Sara Sidle was completely stunned.

"When I was in your house... Don't worry. I'll put it back. _After_." Basderic said smugly.

Sara Sidle paused in horrified realization. Now she sounded sickened. "You planned all of this. Right down to this minute. _This_ is what you wanted..."

Ronald's voice was gloating. "At least now you can appreciate what I went through... the months of planning...the attention to detail...Did you even notice? Seven stab wounds. I stabbed him seven times, just like your mother stabbed your father."

Sara sounded broken. "You sick bastard..."

Basderic continued cruelly, twisting the knife. "I've watched you, Sara... read your emails... witnessed your adolescent groping outside that bar...You know I had to _pay_ Taylor to meet

you at the hotel. I pretended we were friends, told him I didn't want you spending your birthday alone... I even sprung for the dessert."

No response. Ronald's voice is triumphant. "And now I get to kill you, legally. You come in my house, armed, in violation of the restraining order…"

"So just do it already..." Sidle sounds resigned. Ready to die.

 **BAM! - BAM! BAM!** Grissom and the judge jumped and flinched at the sound of gunshots.

Sara, unhurt, sounded bitter but triumphant. "You're done for real this time, Ronald."

"Blanks. You changed my ammo..." Basderic sounded stunned and confused.

Nick's voice sounded satisfied. "Told you I wouldn't let you hurt her..."

Detective Crawford added sarcastically: "These must be yours. Guess they got mixed up somehow.")

The tape clicked off.

There was a stunned silence in the courtroom. Greg and Morgan exchanged a satisfied look. But Morgan gasped at the judge's next words.

"At first blush, this tape may seem like damning evidence. The 'smoking gun' as it were," he smiled grimly at his play on words. "But it is also the basis of the counter charges against Sara Sidle. It's time to hear from Mr. Basderic."

Basderic stood and smoothed his suit jacket. He replaced Greg beside the judge and appeared to ignore the death glares aimed at him. He concentrated on the judge.

Judge Wilcox: "Can you describe the actions that accompanied these voices?"

"Certainly."

The judge replayed the tape. He paused it every few seconds to let Ronald speak.

"I came home from work. It was dark inside my house. I heard Sidle behind me, telling me to leave the light off. I turned the light on to see her better. She was armed and appeared unbalanced. She raised her gun and pointed it at me—point blank. From no more than 10 feet away. After delivering that little speech, she pulled the trigger. When it did not fire, she cleared the slide, then aimed at me and tried to shoot me again."

"Were you in fear of your life?"

"I had removed the firing pin, so I knew it was unlikely, but there was always the chance that Sidle had discovered that and fixed it. So yes, I believed that she was prepared to kill me in cold blood."

"Hardly in cold blood…but what did you do? Did you raise your weapon at the same time that she did?"

"No, Your Honor."

"Why not?"

"I wanted to see how far she would take this. And…I have nothing to live for, now that my Edie is gone."

"So you were willing to die…to make a point?"

"I…I don't know how to answer that."

"You did have a restraining order against her, is that right?"

"Yes, Your Honor. She assaulted me."

"Do you have a copy of that restraining order?"

"I have, Your Honor." Basderic's lawyer produced a copy, and the judge scanned it closely, in silence.

"So…you come home. And the woman you claimed assaulted you, the one who was making accusations against you, is inside your house, hiding in the dark."

"Yes. In clear violation of that restraining order," Basderic had a small twisted grin.

Greg, Morgan and Sara looked worried. Even Grissom's normally impassive face showed a trace of fear.

"Who made the first move? Who was the aggressor, in this encounter?" Judge Wilcox asked.

"She was. I did not move. I did not make any gesture that could be construed as aggressive. She came toward me. Her eyes were wild. Her voice was shaking in rage. I could only watch."

"Were you aware that Ms Sidle had two guns? Her service revolver, which was not in her possession, as she had just been released from custody and her supervisor deemed it unwise. And a second gun, that she kept at home?"

"I did know that, yes."

"So did you tamper with both weapons?"

"Just the one at her house. Her service weapon is kept under lock and key at the LVPD."

"Not having access to the gun locker might have been your undoing, Mr. Basderic. How could you be certain which gun Sara was pointing at you?"

"I couldn't. Like I said I did fear for my life." He sounded more sure now that the judge seemed to be taking his side.

"All right. Now we get to your confession. Would you say that confession was given in free will? Was it given under duress?"

"Definitely under duress."

"Was everything you said true though?"

"Given the circumstances…the stress I was under…I may have stretched the truth."

"How do I know you are not stretching the truth right now?"

There was a relieved titter of laughter. The judge plowed on, totally serious though. "I'm inclined to take a hard look at whether that tape is admissible in court." There was a gasp of surprise. "Confession obtained by interrogation techniques that violate the defendant's free will may be inadmissible. Police deception or trickery, even if not coercive, may lead the confession to be inadmissible," Judge Wilcox declared. "And it's conceivable the confession could be considered a compliant false confession…that is, he said what he needed to in order to appease law enforcement. There is also a possibility of a charge of entrapment."

The CSIs looked stunned.

"Let's get back to how Ms Sidle came to be inside your home." The judge turned to Sara. "How did you get in?"

"I jimmied the lock on the back door." Sara was pale.

"Were you alone at that time?"

"Yes."

"You know that could be considered breaking and entering. Loitering with intent. Lying in wait. Premeditation. How long were you hiding inside, before your colleagues joined you?"

"Less than half an hour." Her voice shook with fear.

"Did they have a search warrant?"

"Detective Crawford stated that he was in fear for my safety…that Mr Basderic was out to kill me, and he and Mr. Stokes .."

"That's not what I asked."

"If I could interject, Your Honor," Sara's lawyer spoke up, and the judge nodded. "In the case of _Warden v Hayden_ police officers in hot pursuit or acting in defense of a person in imminent threat do not need to delay and obtain a warrant."

"Point taken. So were Detective Crawford and CSI Stokes there to prevent you from getting killed, or to allow you to kill?"

There was a long pause. Sara looked pale and sweat appeared at her hairline. She gulped. "I…I can't speak for their…intentions. They stated they were there to protect me. That the end game of Basderic's plot was to lure me in and, then, legally, kill me."

"Were they aware you were armed?"

"My gun was on my hip."

"Did Stokes know your firing pin was disabled?"

"Wha…no, he could not have known."

"So as far as he was concerned, you were armed and ready to ambush Mr. Basderic, in his own home, when you had just been released from custody on the charge of assaulting him. He must have known you had a restraining order."

"We didn't discuss it. It was only a few minutes later that he came home."

"Why didn't Nick Stokes stop you from killing Basderic?"

Sara was torn. If she defended Nick, she implicated herself. If she defended herself, she hurt him. She decided on the safest course. "I can't say what Nick's intentions or motivations were. Other than he wanted to protect me."

"I suppose we need to ask Mr. Stokes. Is he available?"

The bailiff leaned in. "I asked him but he declined to appear. He's taken a new job as supervisor of the San Diego lab."

"Declined? That seems a little callous given the seriousness of the charges against his friend and colleague. However, we must continue." The judge shuffled through his papers, cleared his throat and addressed Sara again.

"Did you make the decision to raise your weapon, aim it at Ronald Basderic, and pull the trigger?"

"I wasn't coached…yes it was my decision to do that."

"So you were prepared to gun him down."

Sara was unable to answer. Her life, her career, were imploding. She had been so confident in the evidence of Basderic's guilt on multiple charges, that she had not considered the legal ramifications of her own actions.

A/N: I'm taking some liberties with the judicial system; I don't claim to be an expert. From what I've gleaned from courtroom dramas, the decisions of what charges are brought against a defendant are made by a district attorney. Not by a judge. Not in a courtroom. This seemed more dramatic, at least to me. I wanted both Basderic and Sara in the same room. Plus it set the scene for Grissom's dramatic return and an explanation for their marital split. Sorry there are so many flashbacks. Thank you all for following and reviewing this story. More reviews please!


	8. Chapter 8

Trials and Tribulations

Chapter Eight

"Ladies and gentlemen, I need to review this tape in my chambers. So let's adjourn until 8 am tomorrow morning."

With that, the judge banged his gavel and Sara staggered to her feet, feeling pole axed. She could see Grissom's worried face peering into hers, but the rest of the courtroom swam out of focus. And she could hear voices, but they were muffled. The room emptied. Grissom could read her, thank God, and he took her arm and so he wordlessly and carefully led her out to the hallway and then to the atrium, where she could catch her breath and feel some space above her head. Only when her eyes seemed to focus again did he release her firmly held elbow.

"Sara?"

Sara shook her head and stared at her feet, still unable to speak.

"Sara, honey? Do you need to sit down, get a cup of coffee maybe? Water? Just…"

Overcome and still mute, Sara threw her arms around her estranged husband. He staggered a bit at the unexpected impact but returned the embrace when…

"Gil! What a treat to see you!" Hodges' most unwelcome voice broke into their moment.

Hodges started forward as if he wanted to hug Grissom himself, forcing Grissom to shrug awkwardly and half turn away, with one arm still around Sara. Undeterred and oblivious to the dynamic, Hodges started babbling eagerly.

"It's been too long boss! You certainly are a sight for sore eyes. Gil, I never thought I would have to go so long without a glimpse. It just hasn't been the same. Although Russell reminds me a bit of your leadership skills. He just doesn't have your depth of knowledge. You're looking fit…for a man of your.. uh, anyway, we should get together, just us guys, you understand?" Here he gave Grissom an exaggerated wink, causing Sara to roll her eyes and edge away. Without even looking, Grissom snagged her arm and tugged her to him.

As Hodges continued his fawning attentions, ignoring Sara, she noticed something. Grissom relaxed a bit with each word and though maintaining a rigid posture and an annoyed expression, his eyes showed a glimmer of enjoyment. _Oho!_ She thought to herself, _he likes the adoration—kind of like me when I was a student enthralled and infatuated with the great man. Perhaps when the luster wore off and he became just the man, the one who left his whiskers in the sink and wet socks on the floor—perhaps my luster wore off too. And sometimes I was cranky and sometimes I was moody—who isn't? That's when he began to seek, even if just subconsciously, to seek a new crop of impressionable young minds to crowd around and seek his approval and attention._ Sara had tuned out but her attention was riveted when Hodges asked,

"So where are you staying?"

She became very interested in his response. After a short pause, he answered quietly, reluctantly, "With Heather." Sara jerked away, her expression shocked and hurt.

"Oh! I guess unbridled passion wins out then," Hodges said with a leer.

"Hodges, please..."

"You could always stay with me, Gil," Hodges offered eagerly.

" _Gil_ . Is staying with me." Sara said in a tone that brooked no argument.

David Hodges finally addressed her. "So, Sara, I thought I'd see you in the courtroom…what are you doing out here?"

"Court's adjourned until tomorrow morning."

"Oh! I suppose my expert testimony will have to wait then," the lab rat said smugly.

"Hodges, please…"

"Yes, Gil?"

"We really must be going…"

"I'll follow…"

"No, no. Sara and I have a lot of catching up to do, now."

"Really? I thought you were…" Grissom glared at him. Sara started striding toward the parking lot. "Oh. All right. Will I see you? How long are you staying in Vegas?"

"As long as it takes," Grissom answered enigmatically, and then he turned on his heel and walked briskly after Sara.

(Exterior, Courthouse Parking Lot, afternoon)

"Sara, wait!"

Sara didn't slacken her pace. Grissom trotted after her. She neared a Cadillac Escalade, shot a look over her shoulder and then ducked behind it. Grissom followed her. She folded her arms defensively and glared at him.

"Heather? _Really?_ Are you _trying_ to hurt me?"

"No, no, it's not like that."

"What's it _like_ , then? Am I never going to be free...are you never going to be out of her clutches?"

"Clutches? Sara, really…" he started in a patronizing way.

"What is it about her? Why do you go running whenever she whistles?"

"I don't, Sara, we've had this out before. She's just a friend. I didn't feel like I have many left in Vegas."

"I'm your friend." Her brown eyes grew wide and her lower lip trembled.

"Yes. You are." Grissom stroked her cheek. "I just didn't want to show up unannounced on your doorstep. I didn't…I wasn't sure of my reception, and it might have been…"

"Uncomfortable. I see your point." She blew out a breath and relaxed her arms. "I don't know how I would have reacted if you did. I do know how I reacted when you showed up in there."

"Oh? And how was that?" Grissom looked hopeful.

"Like the first time I laid eyes on you. Love. Attraction. And then it flooded back. Pain. Puzzlement. Wanting your attention."

He smiled affectionately. "You have it."

"For how long? It's been years…not a word. You could have died…I could have died!"

"But we didn't, and I'm here, Sara."

"Here I thought we could find our way back to each other. I thought we could finally figure out where things went sour. But if you're just back to be with Heather, just tell me now, so I can get the latest heartbreak underway."

"No, Sara, sweetheart, listen. Heather is a friend. Who else was I going to stay with? Him?" He jerked his head in the direction they had come. "I'd be afraid to drop my soap in the shower, if you catch my drift…" This got a small laugh and Grissom visibly relaxed in relief. He leaned against the huge SUV and tugged at her fingers. "Oh, Sara I have missed you so much. Even when you're furious with me, like just now, I miss your passion. I miss that little pucker in your forehead when you're trying to figure something out. I miss your bright eyes..."

There were voices behind them, getting closer. The couple smirked at each other.

"C'mere. My car's right there."

They got in Sara's car and she drove away before they could be interrupted again.


	9. Chapter 9

TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS

CHAPTER NINE

(Interior of Sara's Prius. Sara is driving.)

"But why do we have to go to Heather's now?" Sara fought to keep from whining, and to keep her temper.

"She'll want to know where I am. And my luggage is there."

"You have plenty of clothes at home. Unless…you don't want to go home? You'd rather stay with her?" The old insecurities resurfaced.

"No, no, dear, I'd like…I want very much to spend time with you, dear."

"That sounds like you aren't staying long."

"That's another thing we have to talk about. Later. Here we are."

They pulled up and parked.

(Interior, Captain Brass's Office, LVPD building)

Catherine waltzed in tugging Lindsay behind her.

Jim Brass's careworn face lit up. "Catherine! As I live and breathe. Good to see you." He kissed her cheek. "And who's this? Can it really be…"

Lindsay Willows stepped forward and shook his hand. "Yes, it's me, Lindsay," she said with a shy smile.

"All grown up. You look great."

"Thanks."

"So what brings you to my office?"

"Meet your newest CSI."

"No kidding." Captain Brass sank heavily into his leather chair and rubbed his jaw. "Lindsay? Lindsay is a CSI? Do you know, I just had a flashback to, what, can it be fifteen years ago?"

( _Flashback_ – _CSI building – CAPTAIN BRASS' OFFICE)_

 _(A much younger Jim Brass is in his office. Holly Gribbs stands in front of his desk.)_

 _Jim Brass: So your mother is Lieutenant Jane Gribbs from Traffic, is that right?_

 _Holly Gribbs: (smiles) Yes, sir._

 _Jim Brass: Well, congratulations, Gribbs._

 _(Grissom is also in the office, seated at the couch. Brass holds out her file.)_

 _Jim Brass: You're the fifth person I've been forced to hire. We're the number two crime lab in the country. We solve crimes most labs render unsolvable. Now what makes you think you belong here?_

 _(Holly glances at Grissom. When it's apparent that he's not going to answer for her, Holly turns back to Brass.)_

 _Holly Gribbs: Sir, with all due respect I thought the key to being a lucid crime scene investigator was to reserve judgment until the evidence vindicates or eliminates assumption._

 _(Brass glances at Grissom and smiles.)_

 _Holly: You're prejudging me. I graduated with honors in criminal justice at UNLV._

 _Brass: (flippantly) Yeah, so?_

 _Holly: That's not fair._

 _Brass: Fair? Well, you think putting a juiced-in Lieutenant's daughter on this shift is fair? You know, I've been in the field 22 years. I've seen it all. I've seen people like you come and go, and you know what? They don't amount to nothing but headaches and bad press. Dismissed._

 _(Brass takes a seat at his desk.)_

 _Holly: Fine._

 _(Holly leaves the office.)_

 _Grissom: Think you got through to her?_

 _Brass: You're scheduled to appear at an autopsy at 12:30 A.M._

 _(Grissom stands up.)_

 _Brass: They're cutting up that bozo with a hole in his chest. Take her with. I think every new hire should experience an autopsy on their first night._

 _(Grissom turns to leave the office._ _)_

(End Flashback)

(Different Flashback)

 _Interior CSI Break Room)_

 _(Grissom dangles Nick's new ID badge in front of him.)_

 _Grissom: Congratulations, Nicky, my boy. You are now a C.S.I. Level 3._

 _Nick pumps his hands in the air and whoops._

 _Warrick: Good job, Nick._

 _Nick: Thanks. Uh, hey, Warrick, listen I heard about the whole thing_

 _with the shoe and ..._

 _Warrick: Forget it, man. It's all you._

 _(Warrick stands up and they shake hands.)_

 _Nick: Thanks._

 _Warrick: All right._

 _Catherine: Let's get some breakfast. It's on me!_

 _(Brass appears in the doorway and sighs.)_

 _Jim Brass: (gravely) Sorry to break up your party but I need grave to pull a_

 _double. Holly Gribbs has been shot. She's in surgery now. Apparently the_

 _suspect returned to the scene. They don't think she's gonna make it. Brown,_

 _I'm putting you on administrative leave pending a full report of your_

 _whereabouts. So wash your face and change your socks. You have a long day_

 _ahead of you._

 _(Brass turns and leaves the room.)_

 _(Warrick sighs.)_

 _(Grissom looks thunderstruck.)_

Catherine's smile was uneasy. "You're not going to give my daughter that hard a time, are you?"

"Shouldn't I? Is it fair to all the new hires to treat the daughter of a former supervisor with kid gloves? Baby her?" Brass looked serious, even annoyed. Lindsay's eyes were wide and she dared not speak.

"Well, no, but…" Catherine sputtered.

"But, what? It's a tough job, Catherine, you know this. Brutal. Dangerous. Smelly. Gory. Not everyone can handle it, despite their genetics."

"That's not fair."

"Au contraire, it is fair. I'm going to treat her—treat you, Lindsay—just like every other CSI." The three looked at each other. "No better, no worse. And I'm going to make sure she stays out of harm's way."

Catherine exhaled, unaware she had been holding her breath. "You're right, Jim. Reality check, eh?"

"Lucky for you both I have mellowed these past 15 years."

"Like good brandy?"

Brass smirked. "Indeed. But I still think every new hire should watch an autopsy her first night."

"You're the boss."

(Exterior, a dark Victorian mansion belonging to one Heather Kessler, formerly Lady Heather.)

Sara got out of the car reluctantly and lingered outside briefly, examining the exterior of the gloomy house. Grissom strode up to the door, knocked, and it was opened quickly.

Heather greeted him warmly at the door, asking about his day. She gave him a kiss on the cheek. And she nearly, while pretending not to see her, shut the door in Sara's face. Sara pushed the door open firmly and stepped in, taking Grissom's arm. She glared at Heather, who smirked, then bowed her head and welcomed them into her drawing room.

"So, Gil, you're back sooner than I thought. I would have picked you up at the courthouse."

"The judge adjourned for the day." Grissom glanced at his wife, taking in her tired look. "Sara's been through a hard time and we won't keep you."

"Sara." Heather regarded her coldly. "I wasn't expecting to see you. Gil told me all about it."

"About what?" Sara responded, her hackles up.

"About your…infidelities."

"I've never cheated on Gil. Never."

"But what about those horrid emails?"

Sara shot Grissom an annoyed look ( _did you really need to tell her about that?)_ and drew a breath, sitting taller.

"Those ugly emails were forged by a psycho stalker who was obsessed with me."

"Really." Heather said with a smirk, clearly unconvinced. Sara bristled but remained silent. "It's understandable, you're still very young. (Grissom winced.) "With Gil on the other side of the world for years…?"

"Really. I've never been unfaithful. He is my soulmate." Grissom shot her a look with a ghost of a smile. Sara sat tall and straight and tried to stare Heather down. Heather sneered and turned back to Grissom.

"You always had a forgiving heart, Gil."

"The judge is deciding on charges against that stalker now," Sara added.

"What about you?"

"What about me?" Sara shot back.

"I understand you might be charged as well."

"Yes, I am under review also."

Heather turned back and simpered at Grissom.

"I've changed the sheets for you."

"Thank you, but I won't be staying. Sara and I have a lot to talk about."

"Can I get you anything?" Heather asked him, again ignoring Sara.

"No, thank you. I'll just go get packed." He trotted off upstairs.

There was an uncomfortable silence. Heather looked her up and down and sniffed as if finding Sara wanting. Sara gritted her teeth and looked her in the eye, holding a forced smile.

"You've hurt him a great deal over the years," Heather accused. "You broke Gil's heart. Did you know he came to me when you left him the first time? And the second? He slept in my bed when he had nowhere else and no one else to turn to."

"He slept in your _spare_ bed, and I'll thank you to stop insinuating that your relationship to my husband is anything more than friendship." Sara took a calming breath. "We don't keep secrets. I know he only had sex with you _once_ , long before we got together. I suppose I should _thank_ you for encouraging him to leave Las Vegas, to find me, and marry me."

Heather glared at her.

"What I don't understand is why you've been so hostile to me since then. I tried to be kind to you when you attempted suicide. I was supportive when you needed him to hold your hand all night. I've done nothing to provoke you." Sara regarded her coolly. "Unless. Are you jealous? Do you wish he was yours?"

Heather's cool exterior seemed to crack and she was about to respond, but was saved when they heard Grissom come downstairs.

(End Scene.)


	10. Chapter 10

Trials and Tribulations

Chapter Ten

(Interior, Sara's house)

So they got back to the house he'd barely lived in and the house that Sara knew as an empty one full of sorrow and regret. Home in the sense that it offered shelter for sleep, only. There was so much to talk about and too much to talk about so they sat on the couch and sipped coffee, looking dazed and saying nothing.

Sara couldn't think of a topic that didn't potentially set off accusations or a fight or yet another misunderstanding (Heather, their marriage, their careers, the raked over coals of old discussions,) so she flipped on the TV. "The Big Bang Theory" was on and Grissom had never seen it…Ulan Bator and backcountry Sri Lanka had limited television opportunities. It was the one in which Sheldon is sick. And he is a terrible patient. Sara and Grissom laughed and forgot their troubles. And when Sheldon convinced Penny to sing "Soft Kitty" Gil nearly lost it, guffawing like a buffalo and it made Sara laugh all the harder. They gravitated to the middle of the couch and leaned on each other. Comfort after a trying day. Maybe this is what they needed, to learn to laugh together. Before the thought flew away Sara told him.

"We need to learn to laugh together."

"What? What do…" he thought deeply. He pulled her closer. "Hmm, you're right. We do. Thank you, honey."

"For what?" she asked, soft and sweet with dark eyes shining with anticipation.

"For everything. For being Sara Sidle. For loving me. For helping me to laugh and have fun again. Loving me when I was…when I was like Sheldon to you, to Penny. He's a colossal jerk. Yet she helps him. And forgives him. You've always forgiven me. Can you forgive me again, for breaking up our marriage because of an evil man's lies?"

"As long as you forgive me for leaving you. And not communicating."

"I can do that."

"I'll bet you'd even sing me "Soft Kitty" if I asked?"

"You're a silly man. Come here."

Her slender hand extended and he grabbed it and her into a deep healing hug.

"Come to bed?"

"Don't have to ask me twice."

TBC

A/N: This chapter is a strange interlude in this story, but it bubbled up so neatly I like it. So I'm calling it a chapter. Sorry it's short.

Last update I skipped the standard statement of regret for disappearing mid-story for month after month. But I do apologize.

I had one of the nicest reviews of my life yesterday, and I'd like to thank you (you know who you are) and I appreciate the encouragement very much. I've been in a slump, you could say, with 5 stories unfinished and me procrastinating till I forget their plots. So thanks to Calim11 and her setting a date (Oct 31) for the Fan Fiction of the Year Awards over at csiforeveronline dot wikifoundry dot com (Insert plug here).

Links can be examined on my profile.

While you are here, write me a review? I don't like to beg but it's been over a year since I got any. And they are a treat. Thanks. ILoveJorja


	11. Chapter 11

**TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS**

 **CHAPTER ELEVEN**

 **(Interior, Bedroom.)**

Grissom rolled over and blew out a breath, pulling Sara close in one motion. All that we can see of their bodies is naked, lightly coated with sweat, and they're both breathing hard. Clearly, they have just had some passionate makeup sex.

Sara sat up on her elbow and smiled down at him. She wiped his face with her palm.

"Lipstick."

They chuckled.

"I, uh."

"What, dear?"

"Is this…are we just going to pick up where we left off?"

"I hope so." His eyes glittered.

"I feel like I should yell at you more." Sara grinned uncertainly. Grissom tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. She grabbed that hand and held it, over his heart.

"On the other hand I am sick of fighting and yelling and us going into our neutral corners and not communicating."

Grissom nodded and quirked a hopeful smile.

She laid her head down on his chest. "Ah hell, Dr. Grissom, you know I'm a pushover when it comes to you. If that makes me weak, or any less of a feminist, or anything like my mother, tough shit. I want you back. I'm glad you're back. I want to fight for us."

She lifted her head and looked into his eyes. "Will you fight for us? Will you fight…for me?"

"Yes." He nodded and looked steadily in her eyes.

"Will you fight for me if I go to prison?"

Grissom scoffed. She thumped him on the chest.

"I'm serious! Did you not hear what's happening? I could go to prison, Gil. I could be sentenced on multiple felonies…"

"That won't happen."

"Really? Are you a fortune teller? Because my fortunes are looking bleak."

"I will do everything in my power to see that doesn't happen, honey. I know it seems daunting. And there's a lot at stake." Sara nodded, her eyes serious. "No matter what. I'm in your corner. Even if it is just to visit every other Thursday and bring cartons of cigarettes and a cake with a file in it…"

She thumped his chest again. "Don't. Don't joke. Not yet. Not until this is over."

"Sorry." He took a breath. "I don't know what's going to happen. I know you, and I know a lot of people care about you, and a lot of people know how much good you've done. So for what it's worth, you have some good things going for you."

"Thank you."

She lay down again and he pulled her close and kissed her head.

"Good." She closed her eyes. "I love you Gil."

"Love you too Sara."

He switched off the light.

A/N: Another short one, pardon. But boy, wouldn't it have been nice to see some GSR pillow talk? When they are not fully clothed and lying on top of the covers? Mm hmm.

Reviews! Are a joy.


	12. Chapter 12

**Trials and Tribulations**

 **Chapter Twelve**

(A/N): Thanks for the reviews, please keep them coming! And thanks to ninthwardgurl for a good idea that generated part of this chapter. BTW if you sign in as a guest I can't respond to your reviews. Thanks.

 **(Interior, Hallway outside Courtroom)**

Grissom was seated on one of the marble benches that lined the hallway, his head in his hands. The floor was of shiny linoleum and there was a bank of elevators to his left. The elevator doors opened and Jim Brass stepped off. He did a double take at the sight.

"Grissom!"

Grissom's head shot up. "Jim!"

Grissom stood and the two old friends approached and shook hands heartily. They grinned at each other and exchanged pleasantries. Grissom gestured and they sat down close together.

"How've you been?"

"Fine, just fine. Great to see you!"

"So, I wasn't expecting to see you! I thought you'd left town for good?"

"Came back a few days ago. For Sara."

"For Sara, huh?" Brass shot back with a bite of sarcasm.

"Yes. She needs me. Don't start."

"Oh, I'll 'start' all I like. Don't tell me. She forgave you? Again?"

Grissom shot him an annoyed look.

"Story of her life, I suppose. I never figured out what she…well…"

Grissom raised a trademark eyebrow. "Don't be shy, Jim."

"Ha, don't think I've been accused of that, much. Okay. She's been through hell."

"I know about Basderic."

"Basderic was only the beginning of her latest troubles. Did you know she almost got blown up a few more times? Or that she shot a guy? That she had a loaded gun to her stomach…that was a close call. Oh, and did you know Sara got exposed to some kind of Ebola virus and had to live in a plastic bubble with Greg Sanders?"

Grissom's eyes got wider and wider. "I…no. I didn't. We haven't talked."

"Didn't think so."

"Look, Jim, not that it's any…okay, we both care about her, different ways of course…"

Brass coughed. "Never wanted to sleep with you, pal."

Grissom smirked. "The truth in a nutshell is: Basderic hacked into Sara's email. Sent me some disgusting emails that were purportedly from her. Saying she was sleeping around, wanted to break up."

Brass grimaced. "That's sick."

"Yeah it is. And since I'm no computer whiz, I thought they were the real thing. So I called her. And said it was over. Dumbest thing I've ever done."

"Not going to disagree with you there. As long as you don't count the years you yanked her chain, making her jump…"

"Yes, yes. I remember," Grissom said testily.

"So forgive me if I am compelled to give you a hard time. I _do_ care about her. And as long as I've known her, other than the few years of bliss when you two were together and hush hush, she's been through the wringer, thanks to you. She looked happy when she first started back at CSI. Said she was happily married to your dumb ass. Looked great too. Stable. Not so…woebegone. But as the years went by, the cracks started to show again. Like your little sabbatical to Massachusetts times ten. The fact that this is the first time I've laid eyes on you in…" Brass paused to think. "Five, no, six years?" Grissom nodded. "Six years. Makes me think you were making her do all the heavy lifting, travel-wise." Grissom looked guilty. "Thought so. So it's my duty as a friend to call you out on your behavior. You broke her heart. Again. I know you had a good reason to, now. But…just go easy with her heart. Don't bail on her again."

"I won't."

"Really."

"Yes, really," Grissom answered defensively.

"Yeah well I know her. And I know she will put up with a lot from you. And has, since day one. Don't forget all about this when times get difficult or you have a disagreement. You will never find another who loves you like Sara."

"I know. I get it."

"Do you? Would you forgive her if she treated you this way?"

Grissom opened his mouth to speak and then snapped it shut, glancing away.

"Can you just go on the way you were? Water under the bridge and all that?"

Brass drummed his fingers on his knee, recognizing his friend's usual need for time to articulate his thoughts.

"I just…I just love her Jim." Grissom's voice softened. He looked into the middle distance, with a secret little smile. Remembering. Remembering all the little moments.

 _There is a montage of images one after another. Outside a casino, bright sunlit day. "I don't even have to turn around." "It's me!" Sara, looking very young and eager, takes off her sunglasses and smiles at him… Sara pops out from a doorway, calling flirtingly, "Grissom? Come tape me up?" He tells Catherine: "I love my job." Catherine responds: "It shows." …Sara lingers in a doorway, looking upset. "Do you want to sleep with me?" she asks. Grissom is dumbstruck. "Did you just say what I think you said?" "That way, when I wake up under the blanket, in a cold sweat, you can say it's nothing, it's just empathy." …Inside a dark police station. Sara is seated and Grissom approaches. "Come on. I'll take you home." He gently takes her hand. Sara drops her head, looking ashamed. …Outdoors on a sunny day in a Japanese garden. A man explains to Gil and Sara: "Secret longings—they have a—kind of electricity. They're often much more visible than we would want them to be." They try but cannot resist exchanging a guilty look…Outside, at night, Grissom sits with a camera and a notepad, shivering. Sara appears, with a blanket and a thermos of coffee. Shaking out the blanket, she drapes it around his shoulders and thanks him and he smiles…Grissom with a bushy beard eagerly greets a dirt-streaked jumpsuit clad Sara and follows her down the hallway as she backs up… Inside the breakroom._ _Grissom says, "_ _I think fantasies are best kept private." He gives Sara a smoking hot once over. Then a dozen different glimpses; Sara crouched and concentrating, Sara glancing up and smiling, Sara laughing, Sara sleeping, Sara crying, Sara turning away looking hurt, Sara snapping photos, looking through evidence in the lab, Sara smirking with pursed lips, Sara in a rainforest clearing looking astonished, Sara in a medevac helicopter looking more dead than alive until her eyes open…_

 _And one we haven't seen before: Nighttime in a plant nursery. There is a hole in the ground and evidence of an explosion. Nick, covered in ant bites, is loaded into an ambulance. Warrick and Catherine go with him and the door slams. More car doors slam and vehicles exit. Grissom, covered with dirt and scratched up, dusts off his hands and looks around. There is Sara, looking lost and terribly alone in the darkness. He goes to her and puts his hand on her shoulder. No one else is around. She turns, her face striped with tear streaks through the dirt. "We could have been too late," Sara mutters. He nods. He understands. They embrace. Sara chokes out a sob. "It could have been you." "I know, honey." Grissom pulls back and wipes her tears. "I don't want to be alone tonight," he whispers. She nods, looking dazed, and they walk off together. He leads her into a passenger seat and then leans in, kissing her tenderly._

(Return to present. Grissom shakes off the cobwebs of memories and turns to Jim Brass.)

"I love Sara. I always have. Through ups and downs and separations and reunions. Whenever we are apart, I feel like I'm empty. Whenever we meet again I'm the luckiest man alive. Whether it is me saying it's over or her saying it's over…"

"When did she ever say that?"

"After she left…after Warrick died and she disappeared again. She sent me a video from the middle of the Pacific saying she was happy and had moved on, sayonara."

"Oh."

"Yeah, _oh_. So don't assume our troubles are _all my_ fault. She's always saying we are dysfunctional." Grissom smiled wryly. "But it's mostly because we don't say what's on our minds until it is too late."

"Guys do that."

"Yeah, we do."

"So I was taking a risk, that she really _had_ moved on, when I left CSI. I walked away from everything and went to her in the jungle. And bless her, she did forgive me, and she did welcome me back. But I would have looked pretty silly if she was in a tent with some marine biologist…"

"Marine bio…what?"

"Never mind. Neither of us is very good at suppressing jealousy. And infidelity is a deal breaker."

"Sure."

The double doors to the courtroom opened.

"Captain James Brass?"

"Present." Both men stood.

"They're ready for you."

Brass went through the doors…and David Hodges came out. Grissom groaned internally.

"Hey boss!" Hodges called out enthusiastically. He immediately took a seat, too close for Grissom's comfort. He edged away.

"So did you hear my testimony? I nailed it," Hodges bragged.

"No, I was chatting with Jim. Good."

"So, what are you doing later?"

"I'm meeting Sara here and staying with her as she testifies. Then we are going home."

"Oh, well, we could…"

"You know what, Hodges? I appreciate you keeping in touch with me. But I'm also concerned at what I've heard, about various conversations you've had with my wife."

"I…"

"I'm going to tell you what I told Heather this morning. I know I haven't been around much but things are going to change. And whenever I hear that someone is or has been rude or disrespectful to Sara, I'm not going to let it slide. I didn't realize how bad things were until I heard Heather and Sara talking, and I understand now why she gets under my wife's skin. So as long as she…and you…understand that you will henceforth be just as respectful to her as you are to me, we can remain friends. If not there will be consequences."

"Of course, Gil, I never…"

"Save it, Dave, I know all about it."

"Oh. Well, I'm sorry. I will be sure to extend my apologies to Sara as well."

"Good." Grissom gave him a tight smile and then threw him a bone. "Tell ya what, Hodges, why don't you stop by the house on Saturday. We're having a little get-together. Bring a potluck or a bottle of wine, okay? One o'clock."

Hodges brightened and nodded eagerly.

The elevator doors slid open and Sara stepped off. Grissom leapt to his feet and hurried to her, taking her arm.

"Sara. Thank God. Let's keep walking, okay?" he said in a low tone in her ear.

"What? Oh." Sara shot a look over his shoulder, spotted Hodges, and understood. She sped up and held his hand tighter.

They turned into the courthouse cafeteria and joined the line. Grissom kept shooting glances through the door, but after a few minutes, he relaxed. They got two coffees to go, added cream and sugar, paid, and went back to the bench, now thankfully empty of lab techs.

"Oh, by the way, honey, I invited Hodges for Saturday, is that okay?"

"Sure, that's fine. I was going to."

"Good, and expect an apology from him at some point."

"Apology?" Sara asked, taking a seat outside the courtroom. "For what?"

"Catherine filled me in on some conversations, including one in which he insinuated I married you only for your mind? And that Lady Heather was better suited for 'unbridled passions'…"

"Oh, that one," she laughed.

"Yeah, he sent me emails all the time I was away too. And some of them were not complimentary to you. I just set him straight. Said if he couldn't treat you with the same respect he does me, we were no longer friends." Sara's eyebrows shot up. She looked impressed. "And I said the same to Heather this morning."

She gasped. "You did?"

"I did. I caught the last of your conversation. I understand now why she bothers you. I didn't realize how cruel she was. Sara, I'm sorry about her. She has been using me for years now. And hurting you."

Sara gave him a big grateful smile. And a kiss.


	13. Chapter 13

**Trials and Tribulations**

 **Chapter Thirteen**

 **(Interior, Grissom Residence)**

The party was in full swing. Everyone was there. D.B. with his wife, David Phillips with his wife and little boy, Doc Robbins with his wife too. Hodges lit up when he saw Wendy Simms, fresh from the airport from Washington State. Henry, Archie, Mandy, Bobby, Mia, Ronnie, and lab techs new and old. Officer Akers. Lindsay Willows. Sophia Curtis. Detectives Vartann, Crawford, and Cavaliere, Sheriff Ecklie, and of course Jim Brass. Terri Miller. Heather Kessler had not been invited. Nick Stokes had been invited but sent his regrets. Greg and Morgan couldn't make it as someone had to be on shift at the lab. Some were dressed for work, some for a party. There was music and spirited conversations as CSIs and lab rats and detectives milled about with drinks in their hands. Their hosts, Sara and Grissom, had slipped away after the greetings and introductions.

Catherine stepped in the room, tapped a wine glass to get everyone's attention, and when that didn't work, put two fingers in her mouth and whistled loudly. The partygoers stopped and turned to her, smiling.

"Thank you all for coming! Sara and Gil have yet another surprise for you. The first surprise was that Grissom is having a party." There was a smattering of laughter. "The second surprise is that he's having it at his house, the one he shares with Sara." More laughter. "And the third…well, just follow me outdoors!"

Catherine threw back the tall blackout curtains, flung open both French doors and beckoned. The backyard was festively decorated with flowers and streamers and strings of white lights and more flowers and Chinese lanterns. There were four rows of folding chairs on either side of podium, eight across. Behind the podium was a tall screen decorated with red Chinese dragons and a phoenix surrounding the yin/yang symbol. The guests all filtered in and started to take seats. In the front row was an elderly woman in a wheelchair with a younger woman sitting next to her and another older woman. As soon as everyone took a seat, a cellist from behind them started to play softly.

A minister, wearing a white alb, rope cincture, and green stole embroidered with tree branches and birds, stepped out from behind the screen. He walked to the podium, opened a notebook resting on it and cleared his throat.

"Friends…" The woman sitting in the front row stood up next to the minister and began translating his words into ASL. Grissom's mother smiled. Sara's mother sat up straighter.

"Friends and family members, we are gathered here in the sight of God to witness the reaffirmation of vows for two very special people. Please stand." There was a rustle of clothing as everyone stood. He turned. "I present to you, Gilbert Henry Grissom and Sara Elizabeth Sidle."

There was a smattering of applause and pleased surprised responses.

Grissom, looking dapper and handsome in a black tuxedo, stepped out, holding his hand toward Sara. Sara was gorgeously dressed in a floor length silk evening gown of cream and pale green. There was embroidery around the hem that looked like a flower garden. She held a huge bouquet of wildflowers. A delicate lace veil covered the top of her head to her shoulders. The crowd _Ahhed_ in appreciation. Grissom took her hand and they crossed in front and faced the minister. Catherine came up and took her bouquet, then stepped to one side and turned to him as well.

"From what I understand, when Gil and Sara first wed, none of you could be there?"

A murmur of _No's_ answered him.

"Since that ceremony was in a jungle over 1,000 miles away, no wonder. One of the reasons we are gathered today is to allow you, their dearest friends, and you, the mother of the groom and the mother of the bride, to witness their union. Although Mr. and Mrs. Grissom have been separated in recent years, their love remains strong and this ceremony serves to remind them, and us, of the commitment of marriage."

"Gil and Sara. Today you have chosen to reconfirm your commitment to make your marriage grow and blossom in the years to come."

"May this ceremony, renewing the vows you took to become husband and wife on your wedding day, remind you that despite the inevitable stresses which occur in every life, your love, respect, trust and understanding of each other will increase your contentment and heighten your joy in living as husband and wife."

"Please face each other and join hands."

They did so, exchanging happy smiles.

"Gil, will you pledge to Sara as your wife to continue to live in this happy and loving marriage?"

Grissom: "I will."

"Do you reaffirm your love for her, and will you love, honor, and cherish her, in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, for better for worse, and forsaking all others, be faithful to her for as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

"Sara, will you pledge to Gil as your husband to continue to live in this happy and loving marriage?

"I will."

"Do you reaffirm your love for him, and will you love, honor, and cherish him in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer, for better for worse, and forsaking all others, be faithful to him for as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

"Sara?" prompted the minister in a lower voice.

Sara spoke up. "Today, as we stand here together in front of our family and friends, I renew my promises to you."

Grissom responded. "And I to you."

Sara: "These past years have tested those vows, but our enduring love for one another has prevailed. I come here today to make a fresh start, to renew our vows of love, honor, and fidelity, and to reaffirm my love for you."

Grissom: "We promised to love each other for better and for worse and those have come to pass. Your love has made the good times better and the bad times bearable. I come here today to make a fresh start, to renew our vows of love, honor, and fidelity, and to reaffirm my love for you."

Sara: "Today, I promise these things again and to love you even more."

Grissom: "Today, I promise these things again and to love you even more."

The minister spoke up. "Catherine, do you have the rings?"

Catherine pulled two ring boxes from her clutch purse and handed one to each of them. As one, they opened the boxes and took out their golden rings.

"Sara Elizabeth Sidle, with this ring I pledge my troth, my body, my heart, and my soul to be your devoted husband all the days of our lives."

Sara gave him a watery smile as he slid the ring onto her finger.

"Gilbert Henry Grissom, with this ring I pledge my troth, my body, my heart, and my soul to be your devoted wife all the days of our lives." She put his ring on his hand, both trembling slightly.

"And now as the power of God and of our nation have invested in me, I pronounce you husband and wife. Again. What God has joined let no man put asunder."

"You may kiss your bride."

They kissed. Sara pulled away a little, looked into his eyes, put a trembling hand on his cheek and kissed him again. The crowd, as they say, went wild.


	14. Chapter 14

**TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS**

 **CHAPTER FOURTEEN**

The wedding party for the Grissoms picked up a jolt of energy after the ceremony. Everyone wanted to hug Sara, kiss her on the cheek, and express their surprise and joy at the proceedings. Everyone wanted to shake Gil's hand, thump him on the back, tease him for keeping a secret and wish both of them well. Catherine got a lot of teasing as well for being in on the surprise ceremony and for, apparently, being both maid of honor and best man. There was lots of laughter and the drinks flowed and stories told into the evening. Most of the partiers left when it was time for their shift. Betty Grissom kissed both her son and daughter-in-law and thanked them with tears in her eyes for helping make a dream come true to see her only son marry. Grissom carefully escorted his mother into her handicap-accessible van so she and her companion and ASL translator could return to the nursing home. Sara got Laura Sidle, after she had hugged everyone, a taxi back to her care center as well. Soon after that the party broke up. Gil and Sara celebrated their second wedding night in an energetically loving way.

So it was back to jarring reality when Sara, nursing a minor hangover, walked back into the courtroom and saw Basderic's smug creepy face.

( **Interior, Courtroom**.)

The judge had a laptop computer and kept his eyes on it instead of Sara or Basderic. All the evidence had been digitized.

"After careful review of the evidence and all of your statements under oath I am charging you with the following offenses."

There was total silence in the courtroom.

"Sara Sidle, you are charged with Felony Attempted Murder, Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Misdemeanor Aggravated Assault, Misdemeanor Simple Assault, Violation of a Protection from Abuse Order, and Breaking and Entering. We have located Detective Crawford and he has produced a warrant for you and CSI Nick Stokes, so you will not be charged for being in Ronald Basderic's house without permission and you will not be charged with Trespassing, nor Burglary, nor Entrapment."

Sara was pale with tension at the recitation of charges against her. Her lawyer leaned over and whispered something. She nodded but still kept her eyes on the judge and concentrated on every word he said.

"Ms. Sidle, how do you plead?"

Sara stood up and squared her shoulders. "Not guilty, Your Honor."

"Now we come to the secret recorded confession," the judge continued. "I have listened very carefully to that recording and reviewed legal precedents. Secret recording is legal and admissible as long as one party has consented to the recording. In this case, Sara Sidle consented to the recording. Therefore, the recording is admissible."

There was an audible sigh of relief.

"Ronald Basderic, you are charged with multiple counts of Category B Felony Burglary, Category B Home Invasion, Category B Felony Criminal Trespassing, Category C Felony Stalking, Felony Stalking by Electronic Mail, Felony Tampering with Electronic Mail, Tampering with Evidence, Tampering with Prescription Drugs, and Breaking and Entering into the home of Sara Sidle. All multiple counts."

"In addition you also attempted to take the life of Sara Sidle and without the intervention of law enforcement officials you would have done so. Therefore, you are charged with Felony Attempted Murder, Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Misdemeanor Aggravated Assault, and Simple Assault."

"Ronald Basderic, you are charged with First Degree Felony Murder of Taylor Wynard. You admitted on that recording to his murder and the evidence against you is damning. No matter what the other offenses you are charged with, that offense is subject to severe penalty, including the death penalty or life in prison."

Basderic glared at the judge.

"Ronald Basderic, how do you plead?"

"Not guilty."

"I now charge your lawyers to meet with you and determine a plea bargain to these offenses. Once an agreement is reached I will decide on the next steps."

He banged his gavel.

"Dismissed."

A/N: I realize the GSR reconciliation was abrupt but we have to assume, as we always did, that they did more talking offscreen than onscreen. And they do still love each other and want to be together. Once the misunderstanding was cleared up I can't see why they couldn't get back together.


	15. Chapter 15

**TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS**

 **CHAPTER FIFTEEN**

 **(Interior, Conference Room)**

On one side of a large table sat Sara and her lawyer Charles Bancroft. On the other side was Ronald and his lawyer Bob Richards. Both had legal pads with the charges against their clients and they went down the list quickly.

"Looks like we can cancel out some of these. The assault charges from September 16? At my client's house?" Richards said.

"You mean aggravated assault and simple assault?" Bancroft responded. "I think we can cross off those, one for one. What about the assault charges from the confrontation in the garage?"

"He dropped those. But the protection from abuse order stands."

"With that warrant, we can drop the breaking and entering charge?"

"Only if you drop the same for Sara's house." Bancroft looked at Sara. She folded her arms and shook her head firmly.

"Sorry, but we are not going to excuse your client stalking and breaking into her house multiple times. Jesus, he took pictures of her sleeping!"

"Yeah, okay. Tampering with email?"

"Nope."

"Tampering with her sleeping pills?"

Sara nodded.

"Yeah, we can drop that. It would be trickier to prove."

"Now the more serious charges," Richards continued. "Since no one got shot, can we drop the attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon for both?"

"No!" Basderic shouted. "She tried to kill me!"

"You tried to kill me too!" Sara snapped.

"Guess not," Richards said.

 **(Interior, Courtroom)**

"Ms. Sidle, you are hereby held over for trial in the attempted murder of Ronald Basderic. Bail is set at $100,000."

Sara made a pained gasp and covered her mouth with a trembling hand. This was out of a nightmare. A bailiff grasped her elbow and pulled her to her feet, and then led her through a door by the judge's dais. Sara cast an imploring look over her shoulder at Grissom, who attempted an encouraging smile, but it came out more like a grimace.

On autopilot, it seemed, Grissom drove Sara's car, and it ended up in the CSI parking lot. He turned off the engine and sat, deep in thought. He decided he would at least go inside and talk to his colleagues. Maybe someone would have some advice.

Inside the double doors, the lab was busy, but it had a different energy. People were hurrying around, not just standing by their equipment or looking down microscopes. There was a buzz of the same words over and over. Grissom couldn't make it out. Lab techs he did not recognize were emptying their pockets and shoving all the dollar bills they found in the hands of Morgan, who was literally passing the hat, in this case a CSI cap. Greg also circulated around the glass walls and labs. The receptionist and a few secretaries were in a cluster by the front desk, digging through their purses and talking excitedly.

A secretary he'd never seen before stepped up to him and told him brusquely: "Sara's been arrested. We're raising bail money for Sara Sidle. Put your contribution over there."

"I…I know, I was…there," he trailed off, but she already was halfway up the hallway. No one else paid him any attention.

To Grissom's right, more people were lining up in front of the lab's ATM machine. One by one they made their transactions, stepped away with cash, and shoved it in an envelope. But they did more—immediately joined the end of the line and waited their turn, again. Grissom realized they were withdrawing the maximum at each transaction, $200, and then lining up to extract another $200.

Greg spotted him and came up to say a quick hello. Without waiting for a reply he spun around and jogged to the front desk. The receptionist produced a large manila envelope. Greg hurriedly shoved all the cash he had gathered into it and then thrust it at Grissom without saying anything. The older man took it automatically and Greg jogged away. Morgan stopped at the desk and dumped her stash. Before counting it, she glanced at him and then approached the ex-supervisor.

"Dr. Grissom?"

"Yes?"

Morgan held out her hand. "I'm Morgan Brody, CSI 2. I think I met you, years ago, when I was a kid visiting the lab. Conrad Ecklie is my father."

"Ah. Nice to meet you." Grissom gave her a warm handshake. "What's going on?"

"We're raising Sara's bail. She's not spending one minute more in a cell than absolutely necessary," she stated firmly.

"Ah, that's…thank you," he said slowly. "You realize we only need to raise 10%, in this case, $1,000?"

"Doesn't matter. She can use it to pay her lawyer or whatever."

Morgan gave him a tight smile and turned away. In those few minutes even more cash had been piled loosely on the counter of the front desk. Morgan grabbed a fistful and started to separate the bills by denomination. Grissom handed her the large envelope and set off down the hallway, feeling more than a little déjà vu to be inside the building after all these years. He strode to "his" office without much of a plan and peeked in. It was completely redecorated and the new desk had a placard reading _D.B. Russell Supervisor_. No one was there. This wasn't his sanctuary any more.

Grissom continued to the elevator and went down to the morgue instead.

 **(Interior, Hallway outside Morgue)**

Grissom came upon a touching scene: Assistant Coroner David Phillips gallantly carrying an unconscious Lindsay through the swinging doors leading from the morgue. Dr. Robbins hurried out after them a moment later, his attention on the young woman. Dave laid her carefully on the bench. The three men gathered around her. So when Lindsay opened her eyes, it was to three concerned faces.

"Oh…" she struggled to sit up.

"Take a minute, Ms. Willows, you fainted," Dave told her.

"I'm fine…I'm just…embarrassed."

"Nothing to be embarrassed about, everyone reacts to their first autopsy in different ways," the coroner told her kindly. "Did you hit your head?"

Lindsay gingerly felt around her head. "No. I'm fine, really," she insisted.

Morgan hurried in. "Lindsay, are you okay?" After her assurances, Morgan helped her to her feet. "I'm just going to take her outside for some air." The men agreed. When the women had disappeared into the elevator, Dr. Robbins turned to Grissom.

"I think it's time for some fresh ground mocha, don't you think?"

 **(Nighttime, Exterior, CSI Lab)**

Lindsay was still a little shaky. "Do you have a cigarette?" she asked.

"I don't smoke," Morgan answered.

"Yeah, me neither."

"You just…" they laughed.

"So. You going to be okay with this job?"

"I hope so. Fainting during my first autopsy isn't a good start. But, yuck, he was dissecting an eyeball."

"Ew. Eyeballs are tough," Morgan said sympathetically. "Hey, don't worry about it. My first autopsy? I puked."

"You did?"

Morgan made a pained face. "Yeah, I didn't even make it to the restroom. Right there in the hallway."

Lindsay shook her head.

"It was a decomp. In an enclosed space," Morgan explained.

"Gross. I've heard my mom talking about that. Even after she took a shower at the lab I could still smell it."

"Your mom was always a CSI?"

"My whole life. There never seemed to be a question I would follow in her footsteps."

"Is it what you wanted?"

"Well, I wanted to be a princess, and a ballerina, and a lion tamer…" They laughed. "But yeah, once I grew up? It felt right."

Morgan became thoughtful. "Even though I spent a lot of my life hating my dad, I still admired the work he did," she said. "I wanted to be part of that. Figure out what happened. Who did it. Find justice. And CSIs are cool."

"Yeah, I get that. My mom's best friends were all CSIs, so I looked up to them. Grissom was like a stepdad. Nick, Greg, Warrick…" Lindsay trailed off, looking sad.

"What was Warrick like?"

"He was cool. The king of cool. He didn't walk, he sauntered, he oozed into a room. Handsome…I mean really hot. I always thought Warrick and my mom had a thing but she says they never acted on it. I miss him." With an effort, she changed the subject back to Morgan. "So is it weird that your dad is the sheriff of Las Vegas?"

"It is in a way…but being a CSI here has helped heal that resentment I was lugging around since he and my mom split up. He saved my life…took a bullet for me. I suppose some people might think I got my job unfairly—they might think the same of you…but who cares what they think?" Morgan smiled widely at her. "Your mom. My dad. We have that in common." Lindsay brightened. "And we are going to be CSIs together. We'll be okay." Morgan grabbed her hand and squeezed it supportively.

"Thanks." They shared a moment before going back to work.

 **(Interior, Coroner's Office)**

Grissom, David, and Al Robbins sat in a rough circle, sipping their steaming cups of coffee.

"How did Morgan get down here so fast?"

"I beeped her," Doc responded.

"Ah. Good thinking."

"So, Gil, what's happening with Sara?"

Grissom sighed deeply. "She's been taken into custody. They're processing her now. She'll be in a holding cell until we bail her out. That shouldn't be too long. They are raising money upstairs."

"Sara has a lot of friends," Dave told him.

"Yes, she does."

"Still. Thinking of Sara being stripped and processed and fingerprinted…"

The three men shook their heads, looking deeply pained at the thought.

"How much was the bail?"

"One hundred thousand dollars."

"Yikes. That seems excessive, given her clean record and as a member of the community and law enforcement?"

"I thought so too. But I'm told it is the 'political climate' in reaction to excessive force and police-related killings. I think they're making an example of her. Basderic is being held without bail."

"But she didn't kill Basderic! He was armed! And he would have deserved it!" David Phillips burst out. He always had a soft spot for her.

"No, she didn't, but she tried to. And she's not a cop, so she didn't have the authority to make an arrest or use deadly force. Sara's being charged as if she was a vigilante." The men sighed.

"All those cops, killing unarmed civilians for no reason, you know only a fraction get charged? Let alone convicted," Dave said bitterly. "And our Sara is in jail on trial for her life."

"Not for long."

"How long are you staying in Vegas?" Robbins asked cautiously.

"Until Sara is free. I resigned my last position. I don't want us to be apart ever again."

"Good for you," Dr. Robbins said gruffly. David nodded.

Grissom's phone beeped. "Message from Sara's lawyer," he said. "I've got to go."


	16. Chapter 16

**TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS**

 **LAST CHAPTER**

 _Three months later._

( **Interior, Sheriff Ecklie's Office**. Ecklie is seated behind his desk.)

The door opened and Sara poked her head around it.

"You wanted to see me?"

"Sidle. Please, come in." Ecklie stood and waved her to a chair politely. Once they were seated, though, he looked uncomfortable. He fiddled with a pen and tapped it on his desk calendar, his eyes darting around the office.

Sara narrowed her eyes and regarded him in her penetrating way. She sighed. And seemed to decide something.

"It's alright, Conrad, I know that this is the end for me."

He smiled sadly and nodded slowly. Reluctantly.

"If you can believe it, before all this happened, I was going to offer you the supervisor position," Ecklie told her somberly. "Big promotion and a bump in pay. There's a gaping vacancy since D.B. Russell has decided to permanently retire to Seattle to be with his wife and family. Apparently the death of CSI Finlay hit him very hard."

She nodded somberly. "It was a blow to everyone."

"In addition Catherine is going back to the FBI. She's trying to transfer to the Vegas office. It wouldn't be ethical for her to supervise her own daughter. It's already a bit questionable that Lindsay was hired here. As the top non-federal crime lab in the country, we get thousands and thousands of applications. But I can't cry nepotism because of Morgan. And, well, between you and me, given her ethical…lapses…her record has been spotty. Catherine has skated on more than one occasion."

They chuckled ruefully.

"Of course Nick has left, so that's three vacancies at the CSI graveshift. D.B., Finn, Stokes. He seems to have immersed himself in San Diego…did he ever come back for your trial?"

"Yes, his testimony was very helpful."

Ecklie nodded. "Good. I don't suppose Dr. Grissom…" he asked hesitantly.

Sara filled in the blank. "Would he come back and supervise the shift?" she laughed. "Nope. No way. That ship has sailed."

"Didn't think so, but I had to ask." They smiled.

The sheriff continued. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. Your trials and…tribulations, you could say."

"Thanks."

"I've wondered if we could have done something more about your situation with Basderic. Someone should have noticed him following you?"

"Hm. Didn't really think of that. I've always taken care of myself. I could have called Brass or D.B. or even you when it became clear how he was destroying my life, instead of going there and stalking him in return. I was just so…I was almost out of my mind. Everything was imploding. I'm going to regret that night a long time. In fact, I was almost convinced I would do time for going to Basderic's house that night."

"You got the right sentence. I don't say this much but I believe justice was done. The only thing better would have been if the charges were dropped."

"Right."

"But my hands are tied. I cannot promote someone just convicted of a felony, even if she was given a suspended sentence. Nor reinstate you. I'm sorry."

"I understand." Sara sighed. _This was it._ "I'm prepared to offer my resignation. I have just enough years in to get a partial pension, if you approve."

"Of course." The sheriff smiled with relief.

"So. Thank you." Sara Sidle began to stand.

"No, uh, wait a second."

She sat and looked expectant.

"I know we always haven't seen eye to eye," Ecklie said, smiling crookedly, "but I do want you to know that I regard you very highly as a talented CSI. You have done exemplary work. Your solve rate is first class. You've done a great job mentoring too; Greg and Morgan especially." Sara looked pleased. "Your moral compass and ethical mindset would have led you to a supervisory position in due course."

"Thanks."

"Sara, I'd like to thank you again for agreeing to come back to work when Riley left. I don't know what we would have done."

"I'm glad I did."

"I hope, uh, if I'm not being too personal…I hope your returning to CSI didn't cause the breakup of your marriage?"

"No, Gil…Dr. Grissom has many commitments and job offers that take him all over the world, and some of them can't accommodate a wife. I needed a real job to support us, and to take care of my mother. I didn't-still don't-want to stand in the way of doing the work he has only dreamed of, so we would have been separated in any case. I don't know what other job I would have done, ever, other than this one. It's been my life for 16 years, plus 3 years in San Francisco, minus some…gaps. No, Ronald Basderic caused our breakup, but he's in prison forever. I'm out of prison, and we've reconciled, and you can't ask for a better ending than that."

She stood and they shook hands.

"Goodbye, Conrad."

"Goodbye, Sara. And best of luck to you."

 **(Interior, the Grissom Residence.)**

There was a scratch of a key at the door. Sara came in and deactivated the alarm automatically. She sighed despondently and dropped her keys in a bowl, dumped her bag and jacket and kicked off her shoes.

There was an excited shout from deeper inside the house. "Sara! Sara, you won't believe this!" Grissom rushed into the room, his face lit up with enthusiasm. He waved a stack of papers at her, then shoved them into her hands.

"Look!"

Sara took them, and, her brows knitted in confusion, stared at him. Finally, she flipped them over and looked at what had her husband so excited.

"Oh…" Sara looked up at Grissom, her eyes wide.

Grissom nodded quickly.

"Our…our grant came through? Now? Today?" Sara laughed, unbelieving, staggered back until her legs hit the couch and plopped down. Grissom flung himself next to her, grinning and throwing his arm around her.

"Now I know God has a plan. What would we have done? Both of us unemployed and me never to be a CSI again? And _now_ we get our funding for our research? After all these years!" She laughed.

Grissom, still consumed with emotion, could only shake his head.

 **(Interior, CSI Lab Entrance.)**

The remaining CSIs and lab techs were gathered in a half circle. Sara moved from one to another, hugging David Hodges, Henry Adams, David Phillips, Dr. Al Robbins, Jim Brass, Lindsay Willows, Morgan Brody, and last of all Greg Sanders, who looked to be choking back tears. They murmured the usual things— _Good luck—Keep in touch—It's a shame about your job-We'll miss you._

Sara held Greg's arms in her slender hands. "Congratulations! Supervisor Sanders, who would have guessed?"

He shrugged and looked pleased.

"Really. I'm happy for you. Take good care of the team. Take good care of yourself!"

"I will. Thank you, Sara. You're my best friend. Best ever."

"You too." They kissed each other on the cheek and she reluctantly pulled away.

Sara turned, stood in the exit and looked at them with great affection.

"Goodbye."

She turned away, and the sunlight at the door darkly silhouetted her tall slender body and long legs. The light seemed to swallow her up. Gone.

A/N: Stay tuned for an epilogue. Sara was given a suspended sentence, which means she was found guilty of attempted murder but didn't serve time in prison. Basderic was convicted on all charges and sentenced to life without parole. I skipped over the trial itself because this story is more than a courtroom drama, I hope. And all we really want to know is if she was found guilty or innocent, right?

Nick doesn't appear in the story (except in flashbacks) because George Eads wasn't in the finale. That was my jumping off point, take the characters that were in the finale and work with them. To all my lovely guest reviewers, thank you! Marie, you get it, and I think you must read my mind! I already wrote some of what you said. Thanks!


	17. Chapter 17

**TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS**

 **EPILOGUE**

( **Exterior, San Diego Harbor, Dockside**. A small fishing boat named "Immortality" is tied to the dock. A taxicab pulls up.)

The passenger door opened. Sara Sidle emerged with a messenger bag slung around her body. The opposite door opened and Gil Grissom emerged. They looked at each other across the roof of the cab. The cab driver popped the trunk and dug out 'his and hers' sea bags. Grissom paid him, slung his bag over his shoulder and moved quickly down to the docked fishing boat. Sara took a deep breath of the sea air, looked out at the ocean dreamily, and smiled. She then likewise swung the sea bag over her shoulder and approached the boat.

Grissom held out his hand and she gave him her bags, which he stowed behind him. Tenderly, he held out his hand and helped her step to the boat. Grissom lifted her bodily over the railing and let her down gently, facing him. They embraced. Grissom held her angelic face in his hands and kissed her.

"Welcome aboard."

"Thank you."

"Ready?"

"Ready for anything."

Grissom settled her on a bench and gave her an indulgent, happy smile. Glancing up, his eyes narrowed and focused in the distance behind her. An idea formed.

"Sit tight. I'll be right back."

Grissom shot her a crooked grin, hopped over the boat railing to the dock and jogged up the quay.

Sara, intrigued, turned around and watched him.

Grissom jogged to a pair of fishermen in the task of opening crates and dumping their catch. It was too far to see clearly, but it looked like some kind of mollusk. He gestured and dug in his pockets, exchanging cash for a dripping hemp bag. As he turned, the fisherman called him back. With a sly grin, the fisherman dug into the front of his shirt, extracted a leather bag and pulled the string over his head. He opened the brown leather bag that had rested against his chest and tipped something into a palm. Grissom leaned in. Their heads were close together. Grissom got something else for a wedge of cash and put it in his trousers pocket.

He eagerly trotted back to the good ship _Immortality_. Sara never took her eyes off him. _He is full of surprises,_ she thought.

"Look."

Grissom opened the neck of the hempen bag and rooted around. He pulled out a large oyster. He dumped the stuff on the deck and felt in his pockets for a folding knife. Carefully, he opened a blade, ran it along the seam in the shell and then stuck the point at the hinge and twisted. The shell, covered with gray encrustations, opened stiffly.

"Look." Grissom said eagerly. "This is us. This is our world."

"The world is our oyster," Sara filled in. She grinned from ear to ear.

"Yes!" He gave her a happy smile. "And not only that, we have, I found, I found the pearl." Grissom pulled out a garden pea-sized off-white pearl with pretty opalescence from his pocket. He turned it over to her carefully. Sara rolled it around her long fingers and thumb thoughtfully, examining the pearl.

"That's you." Grissom seemed uncharacteristically emotional. His voice tightened. "That's you, honey. You're the pearl of my world."

"Awww. You sweet talker you." Sara leaned in and kissed him. "You're my pearl too. I never want to lose it again."

"And we have dinner." He cut the mollusk loose, slurped up the oyster and smiled, then opened and prepared another for Sara.

She ate it and grinned at him. His eyes twinkling, he added: "You know what they say about oysters." They tapped oysters together as a toast and slurped them down, grinning madly. Grissom winked at her.

 **(Exterior. At Sea.)**

A brilliant orange and peach sky illuminated the boat as it churned through a choppy sea. At the helm was Gil Grissom with one arm around Sara Sidle, who had both her arms wrapped around him. She hugged him tighter and sighed happily. The boat grew smaller and smaller as it sailed into the sunset. They sailed in, and to, immortality.

 **THE END**

 **A/N:** So that is my version of the CSI Finale. If anyone had asked me to, I would have written it this way. (As if.) That's the wonder of fanfiction, we can rewrite the endings as we please.

I didn't like the convolutions of the aired episode, the bombings and dumb plot holes and lame tear-jerking scenes and especially the sick obsessions with Heather Kessler. Plus all the elaborate courtesy they showed her. Puhlease. I only included her in this story because she was in the cast…and I wanted her to be put in her place. Let's face it, Kessler was a minor character who was in a handful of episodes out of 337. To have her dominate (ha!) the last episode is ridiculous. I wanted to shove that teabag down her smug throat and forget to pull it back up (like in _Pledging Mr. Johnson_ ).

There's a lot I didn't like. I didn't like that they never explained why Sara and Grissom split up. Divorced? I thought they were "taking a break." Ugh. It would have been so simple and logical if they'd blamed Basderic. The signs of marital strain only started after _Code Blue Plate Special_.

I didn't like that Julie Finlay's death was barely mentioned. An afterthought. Or that D.B. Russell the family man split from his wife for no reason. I didn't like how Jim Brass had come down in the world to a lowly casino security guard. Etcetera. The ending seemed slapped on. Yes, it is the ending we were all hoping for, but it would have been 100% better if what led up to it made a lick of sense. There are many many other episodes which are timeless classics. And can be watched repeatedly. For me, not this one.

Finales are supposed to summarize what has happened, tie up loose ends, and give us an idea of what happens to the characters in the future. (See _Downton Abbey_ for a finale that does that job beautifully.) The only plot that really needed to be resolved was the Grissom Sara Romance. So in that sense I am grateful the story revolved around Sara and Grissom. It just seemed they squandered too much of the time on bombs instead of talking and figuring it out. All the serial killers are dead or in jail. Many of the cast had left, so centering it around Catherine, for example, would have been jarring.

Anthony Zuiker could have written it as Brass-centric, because his character was written out in a particularly insensitive way and there were plenty of questions there. He could have written it as Greg-centric, or had a moving tribute to Warrick, and/or to Julie Finlay, or had one last Lab Rats fest…but he didn't. Zuiker kept saying he was rushed, but hey, they managed to write and film an entire episode in seven days, week after week, year after year, right? I think he was just rusty. And he hadn't watched all the episodes since he left. For the record, when Anthony Zuiker was soliciting plot ideas on Twitter? I tweeted him these ideas. So phooey on him. And while we are on the subject, shame on him for being an ass to my friend Mandy. Boo!

Since this is the longest Author's Note ever, I might as well share my conviction that _CSI: Crime Scene Investigation_ was Sara's story. This is one fan's opinion anyway. It really began with _Cool Change_ ; she's the new girl, just as we, the viewers, are new to that world and to the job. So we identify with her doing an uncomfortable job and trying to fit in. Most of us can identify with a one-sided romantic interest too! _CSI_ soared when Sara was happy, broke our hearts when she was sad, kept us at the edge of our seats when she was threatened, all but died when she left, and came back to fizzy life when she returned. Even if Sara wasn't in the episode her presence was always there. And the series ended with Sara and her one true love sailing into the sunset…no one else. Alpha to Omega Sara.

At the cast tribute to the fans at the Paley Center for the Performing Arts, Paul Guilfoyle said exactly what I have said for years…Jorja Fox was the heart of the cast. The most compassionate and generous one of the group, who helped mold them into a family and make the new guys welcome too. So because of Jorja, Sara was the beating heart of CSI. A role model. An inspiration. A moral compass (according to CBS's cast bio). The reaction of fans when Jorja's job was in jeopardy, Dollars for Sense, proves the loyalty she inspired. And she carried that hope of a happy ending and requited romance in her hands for all us fans all those years. Through all the trials and tribulations, in the end, she got her man. She rocks. Thank you Jorja Fox.

So farewell, CSI, I will miss you. I do miss it. No other show will ever consume and enthrall me like this one. However, I plan to write and read CSI fanfiction as long as I am able. There are still plenty of stories to tell. I dearly hope all of you talented writers continue too! Join me on CSI Forever Online, both at wikifoundry and on Facebook, and we _will_ continue. If you like this story, please nominate it and vote for it on the Fan Fiction of the Year Awards? More urgently, I would love it if you write a review? Thanks for all the reviews. They made me laugh, they made me smile, and they definitely made me think. Thanks and bless you all. Until next time, ILoveJorja


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